HPC & AI Workload Management Team Lead (HPC Engineer 2/3)

Los Alamos National Security LLC; Los Alamos (NM); Hybrid; USD 106,000 - 216,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance (PPO/HSA)

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

401(k) with generous match

Tuition assistance

Paid leave & PTO

Flexible schedules

Relocation assistance

Job summary

Los Alamos National Laboratory, operated by Los Alamos National Security LLC, seeks an experienced HPC Engineer to manage scheduling, automation, and deployment across production HPC environments in Los Alamos, NM. The role involves leading resource optimization for large-scale modeling, AI/ML workloads, and evolving architectures.

The position offers exposure to cutting-edge HPC infrastructure, collaboration with vendors and internal teams, and opportunities for technical leadership and on-call

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in a STEM field with 4 years of related experience or equivalent
• Master's degree in STEM with 6 years of related experience or equivalent
• Experience administering Linux systems and applying DevOps to support reliable operations
• Experience automating workflows and scripting in languages such as Python, Bash, C, or C++

Responsibilities

• Configure, deploy, and maintain HPC scheduling software and databases on production systems
• Analyze scheduling performance and optimize resource allocation for modeling, AI/ML workloads
• Develop CI/CD pipelines and IaC solutions for testing, provisioning, and deployment
• Lead deployment and integration of new HPC systems and architectures
• Collaborate with vendors and internal teams to resolve issues and implement updates
• Provide technical direction and participate in on-call rotation

Skills

Linux administration

Automation & scripting

DevOps practices

Technical direction & collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in STEM

Master's degree in STEM

Tools

Slurm

Moab

LSF

PBS/Torque

Grid Engine

Flux

Job description

What You Will Do

This position is open for external candidates only to apply.

Join the High Performance Computing Environments Group (HPC-ENV) at Los Alamos National Laboratory to support the computing infrastructure that enables scientific modeling and simulation, artificial intelligence and machine learning, and emerging computing technologies. As a member of a small team, you will play a direct role in operating production systems, managing HPC scheduling and resource allocation, and improving system reliability and efficiency.

We are a small team, and each member plays a direct role in operating our production systems. We are seeking an experienced professional in HPC scheduling and resource management to lead the team in ensuring the reliable operation of our production systems, which include:

• Large-Scale Modeling & Simulation (e.g., physics, engineering, climate) infrastructure
• Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning (AI/ML) deployments
• Emerging Architectures for next-generation computing needs

This position will be filled at either the HPC Engineer 2 or HPC Engineer 3 level, depending on the skills of the selected candidate. Additional job responsibilities, outlined below, will be assigned if the candidate is hired at the higher level.

HPC Engineer 2 ($106,400-$176,000)

• Configure, deploy, maintain, and troubleshoot HPC job scheduling software and associated databases on existing and new production systems.
• Analyze scheduling performance and optimize resource allocation for modeling and simulation, AI/ML, and other computing workloads.
• Develop and maintain workflow automation, continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) pipelines, and Infrastructure as Code (IaC) solutions for testing, provisioning, configuration, and deployment.
• Collaborate with vendors and internal technical teams to resolve issues, implement updates, and integrate scheduling solutions with new computing architectures.
• Provide technical direction, coordinate project activities and task execution, and provide input to group management during annual performance reviews.
• Participate in an on-call rotation to support production operations.

HPC Engineer 3 ($128,000-$215,900)

• Lead the deployment and integration of new HPC systems and architectures, including automated provisioning and configuration.
• Lead efforts to optimize scheduling and resource utilization across large-scale simulation and AI/ML workloads.
• Work with stakeholders and vendors to define system requirements and guide technical solutions.
• Evaluate and introduce new approaches to HPC system management, automation, and orchestration.
• Partner with production system administrators to diagnose and resolve complex system issues affecting applications running on HPC resources.

What You Need

Minimum Job Requirements:

• Linux Administration and DevOps: Demonstrated experience administering Linux systems and applying DevOps practices to support reliable system operations.
• Automation and Programming: Experience automating technical workflows and programming or scripting in languages such as Python, Bash, C, or C++.
• Computing Environments: Working knowledge of one or more of the following: large-scale system administration; job scheduling and modeling and simulation workflows; or AI/ML infrastructure, deployment, and tooling.
• Technical Direction and Collaboration: Ability to provide technical direction, coordinate work, and collaborate with team members, vendors, and internal partners to resolve technical issues and support production operations.

Additional Job Requirements for HPC Engineer 3:

• Production HPC Operations: Demonstrated experience managing production HPC environments and resolving complex operational issues.
• Technical Leadership: Demonstrated accomplishments serving as a technical lead for a project, including guiding technical work and coordinating contributions from others.
• Scheduling and Resource Management: Demonstrated experience administering an HPC or AI job scheduler or resource manager, such as Slurm, Moab, LSF, PBS/Torque, Grid Engine, Flux, or Run.
• Parallel Runtime Systems: Experience working with the internals of Message Passing Interface (MPI) implementations, such as Open MPI or MPICH; PMIx; or a similar parallel runtime model.
• Automation and Orchestration: Knowledge of automation, orchestration, and deployment tools such as Ansible, Argo CD, Kubernetes, Terraform, or similar technologies.

Education/Experience for the lower level: Positions requires a Bachelor' degree in a STEM field from an accredited college and university and 4 years of related experience, typically with post-doctoral research experience at a university or national lab or equivalent experience directly related to the occupation.

Education/Experience for the higher level: Position requires a Master's degree in a STEM field from an accredited college or university and 6 years of relevant experience or an equivalent combination of education and experience directly related to the occupation.

Desired Qualifications

• Knowledge of virtualization, containerization, and resource orchestration
• Expertise in managing large, complex computing environments
• Experience working with, debugging, and adding features to large code bases in languages like C and C++.
• Experience with monitoring, dashboards, and data visualization (i.e. Splunk, Grafana)
• Experience with OCHAMI or similar HPC cluster management frameworks
• Understanding of cloud platforms and cloud-native DevOps practices (AWS, Azure, GCP)
• Experience with GitLab CI, ArgoCD, or similar continuous delivery tools

Work Location: The work location for this position is hybrid and is located in Los Alamos, NM. Hybrid is defined as working partially onsite/partially offsite but within 2 hours ground commute of this location. All work locations are at the discretion of management and can change at any time with appropriate notice.

Position commitment: Regular appointment employees are required to serve a period of continuous service in their current position in order to be eligible to apply for posted jobs throughout the Laboratory. If an employee has not served the time required, they may only apply for Laboratory jobs with the documented approval of their Division Leader. The position commitment for this position is 1 year.

Due to federal restrictions contained in the current National Defense Authorization Act, citizens of the People's Republic of China-including the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau-as well as citizens of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea), and the Russian Federation, who are not Lawful Permanent Residents ("green card" holders) are prohibited from accessing facilities that support the mission, functions, and operations of national security laboratories and nuclear weapons production facilities, which includes Los Alamos National Laboratory.

Where You Will Work

Located in beautiful northern New Mexico, Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is a multidisciplinary research institution engaged in strategic science on behalf of national security.

• PPO or High Deductible medical insurance with the same large nationwide network
• Dental and vision insurance
• Free basic life and disability insurance
• Paid childbirth and parental leave
• Award-winning 401(k) (6% matching plus 3.5% annually)
• Learning opportunities and tuition assistance
• Flexible schedules and time off (PTO and holidays)
• Onsite gyms and wellness programs
• Extensive relocation packages (outside a 50 mile radius)

Additional Details

Directive 206.2 - Employment with Triad requires a favorable decision by NNSA indicating employee is suitable under NNSA Supplemental Directive 206.2. Please note that this requirement applies only to citizens of the United States. Foreign nationals are subject to a similar requirement under DOE Order 142.3A.

Clearance: Q (Position will be cleared to this level). Selected applicants will be subject to a background investigation conducted by or on behalf of the Federal Government, and must meet eligibility requirements* for access to classified matter. This position requires a Q clearance, and obtaining such clearance requires US Citizenship except in extremely rare circumstances. Dependent upon the position, additional authorization to access classified information may be required, which may or may not be available to dual citizens. Receipt of a Q clearance and additional access authorization ultimately is a decision of the Federal Government and not of Triad.

*Eligibility requirements: To obtain a clearance, an individual must be at least 18 years of age; U.S. citizenship is required except in very limited circumstances. See DOE Order 472.2 for additional information.

New-Employment Drug Test: The Laboratory requires successful applicants to complete a new-employment drug test and maintains a substance abuse policy that includes random drug testing. Although New Mexico and other states have legalized the use of marijuana, use and possession of marijuana remain illegal under federal law. A positive drug test for marijuana will result in termination of employment, even if the use was pre-offer.

Regular position: Term status Laboratory employees applying for regular-status positions are converted to regular status.

Internal Applicants: Regular appointment employees who have served the required period of continuous service in their current position are eligible to apply for posted jobs throughout the Laboratory. If an employee has not served the required period of continuous service, they may only apply for Laboratory jobs with the documented approval of their Division Leader. Please refer to Policy P701 for applicant eligibility requirements.

Equal Opportunity

Los Alamos National Laboratory is an equal opportunity employer. All employment practices are based on qualification and merit, without regard to protected categories such as race, color, national origin, ancestry, religion, age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, marital status or spousal affiliation, physical or mental disability, medical conditions, pregnancy, status as a protected veteran, genetic information, or citizenship within the limits imposed by federal, state, and local laws and regulations. The Laboratory is also committed to making our workplace accessible to individuals with disabilities and will provide reasonable accommodations, upon request, for individuals to participate in the application and hiring process. To request such an accommodation, please send an email to [e-mail] or call (505)-664-6947.